What’s your spark status?
Veronicah Cohen, Creative Spark Program Manager here. As our name implies, Creative Spark’s mission is to nurture the unique spark of creativity that lies inside all of us no matter our age or potential challenges. We believe that spark is a guiding light that never goes out, but it can be neglected or turned down creating a state of burnout. We were recently tasked with evaluating the need for our work in senior living settings. Now usually this could be accomplished through a simple survey, but I started thinking about the amazing senior living team members we want to support and how a simple survey could be enchanted to serve them better. I wanted to take this opportunity to the next level and use my creativity to make it more fun and valuable than what a survey could accomplish.
So, I turned toward the world of online quizzes like “Which muppet are you?” and “What’s your inner goddess?” Could Creative Spark turn a needs assessment survey into something more? With the help of our Business Strategist, Park Cofield, what could have been a quick, but somewhat boring survey became an interactive quiz posing the question: What’s your spark status? This quiz offers insight into the current state of your spark of creativity at work and then offers up immediate, sustainable solutions no matter whether your spark is flickering and on the verge of total burnout or whether it is well-tended and ready for the next level of cultural change within your organization.
This shift in intention and willingness to try something new for Creative Spark in the name of enchantment and creativity initiated a three month journey of crafting, scoring, testing and revising. We called in our quiz experts and our Sparklers in the field to create another “for and by” product that aligned with the real life experiences of senior living leaders attempting to make professional development and day-to-day operations more joyful and engaging. Needless to say it was a labor of love, but I am proud to say we have crafted a unique result that gives us in-depth insight into the current state of senior living teams and their willingness to try innovative strategies in their training.
We also did not want this to be purely a sales tool. Creative Spark provides so many free opportunities for community support like our monthly Spark Gatherings and tools that can immediately be used on the job like our creative engagement curriculum, so we made sure to dominate our recommendations with offerings that are 100% accessible to everyone. We also have added a free 30-minute consultation call for anyone taking the quiz, so that you get our expert opinion on where you should start with Creative Spark.
So, what now? Now it is time to launch “What’s your spark status?” into the world and start collecting insights about where we are most needed. You can take the quiz if you are a senior living leader looking to strengthen team culture, reduce burnout, and elevate engagement at this link: https://sparkstatus.scoreapp.com/. And if that’s not you, please forward this link to the people in your life who would benefit! Creative Spark is so grateful to our incredible community of creative aging advocates and the ongoing support you offer our mission. Let’s get the next generation of learners on-board with the fundamental question: What’s your spark status? And go forward together!